ROLLING MEADOWS, Ill.,
Aug. 12, 2013 /PRNewswire/
-- Northrop Grumman Corporation (NYSE: NOC) has achieved
another major milestone in developing equipment to defend
helicopters against man-portable air defense systems and other
heat-seeking munitions.
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With the completion of the Common Infrared Countermeasure
(CIRCM) Preliminary Design Review (PDR) July
25, Northrop Grumman presented the U.S. Army with a system
design that surpasses the program's weight and electrical power
requirements and represents the next generation of aircraft
survivability systems.
The PDR marked the final design review of the program's
technology development phase, providing the Army with the necessary
data to move into the engineering and manufacturing development
(EMD) phase. Northrop Grumman completed the PDR on schedule based
on requirements established at contract award.
"What we presented during the review was exactly what we
promised in our proposal to the Army 26 months ago: detailed
performance data from mature CIRCM systems demonstrating a system
that protects aircrews at an affordable cost," said Jeff Palombo, vice president and general manager
of Northrop Grumman's Land and Self Protection Systems Division.
"Our PDR date was established 14 months ago, and with close
collaboration with the Army, we executed on time with anticipated
results. With our CIRCM system testing moving out smartly, we are
well prepared to support our Army customer with compliant EMD
hardware and rapid production capability."
CIRCM is a lightweight, low-cost, highly reliable, laser-based
countermeasure system designed to work with missile warning systems
for rotary wing, tilt-rotor and small fixed-wing aircraft across
the military services. Northrop Grumman is developing its solution
with partners SELEX ES and Daylight Solutions. The company was
awarded a technology development contract to develop the system in
2012. It completed acceptance testing on the first suite of
equipment and delivered a complete hardware set in January – two
months ahead of schedule.
Northrop Grumman is an industry leader in directional infrared
countermeasures system design and manufacture. The company's
infrared countermeasures systems have been installed on more than
800 aircraft representing 50 different aircraft types, including
large and small fixed-wing, rotary-wing and tilt-wing
platforms.
Northrop Grumman is a leading global security company providing
innovative systems, products and solutions in unmanned systems,
cyber, C4ISR, and logistics and modernization to government and
commercial customers worldwide. Please visit
www.northropgrumman.com for more information.
SOURCE Northrop Grumman Corporation